Velo Orange Frames : Sneak Peak

Our friends over at Velo Orange released some proto-type photos on their blog of two upcoming frames. A randoneering frame and 650b city frame.

Here are photos of the final prototypes of the VO production Rando and City frames. These frames, and the forks, should arrive here next week and I’ll have more pics then.

I think the Rando frame looks nice, but for three small things. The head tube probably will not be extended. The chain stays should should go higher up on the seat lug. That means using a longer cap (or plug), which is very easy to change. And I’m not 100% happy with the appearance of the rear dropout, though it will work perfectly well. I might search for one with more of a retro look. These small changes won’t neccesitate a new prototype, so if the bike builds up and rides as excpected they should be available in about 90 days. This frame has exactly the same geometry and tubing thicknesses as our semi-custom frame.

Here is the 650b city bike. Again there are a couple of very minor changes we may want, but overall it looks good.

I don’t have final pricing yet, my best guess is around $800 for the Rando and $450 for the City (including the fork). If all goes well with testing we’ll with break with tradition and accept pre-orders, or at least deposits, for the first production run.

Inquiring with Tom, the General Manager of the wholesale side of Velo Orange, VO Imports, I learned more about what makes a city bike special.

The Velo Orange city frameset is built around a 650b wheel, in 5 sizes. I don’t think anyone is making city bikes with 650b wheels.

It has low trail geometry which makes it ideal for outfitting the bike with fenders with a minium of toeclip overlap. The handling is appropriate for a non fast city bike (your typical 10-15mph city speed), and is made with outfitting it with a front rack in mind.

Our frame will be sold with a fork. There are brraze ons for fender braces, racks, bottle cages and cable guides. It has canti studs. The chain and seat stay bridges are positioned for a perfect fenderline.

The frameset is TIG welded. We did this because it greatly reduces the cost, is plenty strong and is more discrete than showy lugs. You can lock this bike up without it attracting too much attention like lugged steel bikes do. It blends in.

You’ll want to build up the city bike with a porteur rack and go to the farmers market, loading it up with groceries. It will be put into service as the errand bike, hauling big trash day finds, and lumber yard runs.